Stagecoach South West are upgrading

Contactless payments available on all Stagecoach South West Services

• Passengers can now pay for bus journeys using contactless credit or debit cards, Apple Pay or Android pay
• Faster boarding, secure payments, no cash required
• Events to showcase benefits of contactless payment held across the South West

Bus customers across the South West are set to benefit from faster boarding thanks to the roll out of contactless technology.

The new contactless payment system has been installed in over 380 Stagecoach South West buses, speeding up boarding times and taking away the need for customers to carry and pay with cash.

Stagecoach South West is celebrating the launch of the contactless payment system with fun events across Devon and the chance to win an Amazon Echo Spot. A giant ‘loop game’ will be set up at a number of locations in the half-term holidays. The quickest ‘contactless contender’ will win the prize and be crowned ‘best in the south west champion’. There will be a chance to win prizes and find out more about contactless payment.

Managing Director, Bob Dennison, said: “With more cars than ever on the roads, congestion is a major problem in so many areas. We are continuing to work harder than ever to make bus travel as easy and stress free as possible. “The contactless payment system will help speed up journey times and make travelling by bus so much easier for our customers, we do hope that residents will come and join us at one of our fun events across the region and find out more. ”He added: “The new technology also works in tandem with the Stagecoach app, that allows passengers to track buses in real-time.”

The contactless payment system allows customers to pay with their debit or credit card, or apple and android pay, securely and quickly at the start of the journey.

Further information about the contactless payment system can be found at https://www.stagecoachbus.com/regional-help-and-contact/south-west/contactless

You may be interested in...

The street performers of Totnes are as much a part of the town's character as its castle, shops, and quay, and while musical tastes may differ there's no denying that a few Totnesian troubadors have gone on to greater things. Below are two popular musicians you may have heard of but may not have known hail from Totnes, and one to watch out for.

Joe from Metronomy

Electronic music group Metronomy was formed by Joseph Mount in Totnes in 1999. In addition to being the lead singer, and playing keyboard and guitar, Joe releases remixes of songs by the likes of Gorillaz and Lady Gaga under the Metronomy name. In 2016 Metronomy released their latest album Summer 08 though it was 2014's Love Letters that delivered their highest chart position at number 7.
If the name of Metronomy's first album Pip Paine (Pay the £5000 You Owe) seems familiar it was inspired by the message painted onto old cars parked around town.

Ben Howard

Although not born in Totnes, Ben's musical career did start here - one of his first musical gigs was in the Seven Stars Hotel. Since then Ben has released two critically acclaimed albums, Every Kingdom and I Forgot Where We Were. In addition to his musical achievements which include two BRIT awards and a number one album, Ben also has the honour of appearing on the Totnes £10 note.
Ben's clearly never forgotten his roots and the video for 2011's 'Keep Your Head Up' was filmed at Dartington.

Ryan Keen

Busy working on his second album and one to watch out for Ryan Keen was a guitarist and songwriter for other musicians before starting his own career in 2009. You can find Ryan on Twitter or listen to his latest song 'Guidance' here.
With a thriving local music scene in Totnes and the South Hams the next big thing could be attending an open mic night near you, or even busking on the streets. So keep your eyes out and your ears open when you're walking down the high street.

Local Hero beer created using hops from Totnes community at Lion BreweryThe Hop Club at the Lion Brewery has been enlisting locals as hop farmers for 2 years now with 2018 being the third harvest supplied by the community. A delicious, speciality beer is created from the harvest, with some of the beer being given back to those who supply the produce.In 2016 the total harvest amounted to 1.3kg, which increased by a staggering 1150% in 2017 resulting in 15kgof fresh hops. The total hop harvest for 2018 was just over 15kg and would have been 20kg but sadly two of the biggest growers were unable to pick. The produce is brought to the Lion Brewery in a variety of vessels from little bags and tea cups to anything up to large bin bags. The hop plants are covered in hop cones which if teased apart will produce a yellow powder running down the middle called lupulin, which is the magic ingredient needed by the brewery to create the beer.‘Local Hero’ is the name of the once-a-year brew which is created using the community hops in time for the Forking Local Food Festival on Vire Island on October 8th. The batch also uses local ingredients including 10% of the mash being pea flour from the brilliant Grown in Totnes. In Spring 2019 the brewery will be looking for more hop farmers, big and small. Rob Hopkins, one of the Lion Brewery Directors said, ‘It’s things like this that make our brewery the very special thing that it is. Whether your harvest was small enough to fill a bin bag or a teacup, whether the slugs ate your plants or you were showered with lupulin, thank you.’If you haven't harvested before and you’re interested in getting involved next year, contact the Lion Brewery for tips and advice.

Tucked away down a siding of one of Devon’s beloved steam railways is a conservation project helping to reintroduce endangered species to the wild. The Dartmoor Otters and Buckfast Butterflies Sanctuary at Buckfastleigh is a small visitor attraction where you can learn about these beautiful creatures and the important work happening to protect them. We were invited to review the sanctuary by Visit Totnes.
This was our first mini-adventure of the summer holidays and the girls and I had roped in Tin Box Grandma and Grandpa for the experience. None of us had been to the sanctuary before despite riding the South Devon Railway between Buckfastleigh and Totnes on other occasions. Tickets are available to combine the train, otter sanctuary and Totnes Rare Breeds Farm at the other end of the track. Together they make a full family day out in South Devon. Read more . . .